The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
The present invention relates generally to oil wells and, in particular, to a measurement system and a method for monitoring a bi-phase fluid.
In oil field well servicing applications, fluids can be foamed to create a lightweight dual phase system (i.e. bi-phase fluid) consisting of both gas and liquid phases. The dual phase system can be injected into an oil well at pressures exceeding 5000 psi. There are currently no non-radioactive sensors on the market that can measure characteristics of the dual phase system such as a foam quality, a foam rate, and/or a foam density under the exposed conditions.
Monitoring the foam quality, the foam density, and the foam rate is beneficial to ensure that a given operation is being performed as designed, identify inconsistencies in the operation and to ensure that all parameters are maintained within the operating envelope of the associated equipment.
The foam quality, the foam density, and the foam rate can typically be calculated based on measurements of several parameters. This requires all necessary parameters to be identified and a calculation made to determine the foam quality, density and rate at a given pressure and temperature.
Due to the complexity of the calculations and the necessary parameters required to make the calculation, the current processes do not provide a timely foam quality, foam density and/or foam rate that would allow for the immediate identification of an inconsistency in the operation.
It is always desirable to provide a real-time calculation of at least one of a foam quality, a foam density, and a foam rate, thereby allowing for a substantially immediate identification of any inconsistencies which can affect the overall quality of an operation.